Kiri Shiratori
Kiri Shiratori, also known as Kilimanjaro, is a student at West Kureoji Grona Academy and Overall Commander of the Sensha-dou team. She is the heiress of the Shiratori family and its estates. She is also the older sister of Nagisa Shiratori. Background Inspiration and Prelude Kiri Shiratori is the firstborn to a wealthy family who owned coffee plantations, amassing a large fortune from the selling of coffee beans. When she became a first year in high school, she saw Darjeeling during a parade and was awestruck by her graceful and elegant demeanor. As such, she aspired to be like her, going so far as to mimic her appearance and taking up Sensha-dou at West Kureouji Grona Academy, rising in the ranks to become the overall commander of her team. As her last year in high school drew near, Kiri wanted to have a chance to fight against the real Darjeeling, and thus was forced to challenge Bellwall for their place in the Commemorative Cup. In order to ensure her victory, she sent her sister Nagisa Shiratori to Bellwall as a transfer student, in order to scout out their tactics and strategy. In the days leading up to the match, she would call Nagisa, who would pass on the information she had learned at the school. Confronting Bellwall Days before the match, Kiri decided to aggravate and intimidate Bellwall's Sensha-dou team with an unannounced visit. In order to do so, she dropped onto the school grounds in her A43 Black Prince with the aid of a C-17 Globemaster, tearing up the main road in the process as well as nearly running over Emi Nakasuga and Hitomi Yuzumoto. Once Emi realized that they were facing Seiguro and not St. Gloriana Girl's High School (The two can be read as Seiguro, despite having different characters.) and exclaimed that it was a scam, Kiri wondered why she was getting angry. She then greeted Neko Yamamori and Doi Chifuyu, asking them if they still remembered the stakes hanging on this match. When Neko responded that it was the rights to the commemorative cup, she watched bemusedly as Emi confronted Neko and Doi with this new information, noting that their teamwork was, "all over the place". She then commented that she was also there to greet the new commander who had come from Germany, but claiming that all she saw was a girl, "wearing a lame hairclip and smelling of the sticks (countryside)". This infuriated Emi, who claimed that Kiri had, "crossed a line that should never be crossed". Kiri simply chuckled and said that she doubted it would go the way Emi wanted it to, claiming that all the Bellwall tanks would be, "pierced through" by the Black Prince. She then encouraged them to use all the tactics they liked, saying that it would do them no good in the end. She then glanced slightly at Nagisa, who flinched upon her gaze. As Kiri was boarding her tank, the Kawashiba Sisters appeared and screamed when they saw the damage done to the main road of the school, as the A43's landing had literally shredded the road. Kiri threw a money card (as compensation) at Kanako's forehead, and claimed that she had no need for change, as she was rich. This last insult had the effect of angering both sisters, as well as the rest of the Bellwall leaders. Who were determined to take her down the next day. During that night, she received yet another phone call from Nagisa regarding Bellwall's plans. Nagisa's Change of Allegiance As the days had gone by, Nagisa Shiratori found herself more and more attached to Bellwall, as they had treated her with kindness and made efforts to help her improve greatly, in contrast to Kiri using Nagisa as a servant while she was in Seiguro. Finally, on the day of the match, during a scheduled meeting with her sister before the battle started, Nagisa refused to spy on Bellwall while the match was in progress. Kiri responded by slapping her sister across the face, then threatening to make her drop out from Senshado entirely, unless Nagisa went through with the original plan. Emi Nakasuga, who had been hiding in some nearby bushes having followed Nagisa out of concern for her, ten revealed herself and confronted Kiri about her actions. It was here that Nagisa and Kiri revealed that it was Kiri's very last year of doing Senshado, as she was in her last year of high-school, and as the head of her generation she was expected to take over running the family business as soon as she graduated. This would force her to stop pursuing Senshado as a career, or even a hobby. With that being said, she wanted to have one final chance to face off against "the real Darjeeling" before she, "entered her death-bed". Having said that, she mentioned that since Nagisa had been compromised, there was no need for her to spy on Bellwall anymore. She told Emi to take care of Nagisa, apparently relinquishing control over her little sister. She then returned to her camp to prepare for the battle against Bellwall. Bellwall vs West Kureouji Grona In the opening moments of the match, Kiri attempted to bait Bellwall by sending out a pair of Matildas to draw the attention of the two tank destroyers, hoping to take out the turretless, but powerful tanks in the early part of the match. However, Emi saw right through her deception, purposely sending the two tank destroyers ahead of her main force in order to bait Seiguro into attacking the TDs, leaving their flanks exposed to Bellwall. With their sides facing the rest of the Bellwall force, with several Matilda tanks being fired upon and one immediately eliminated from the match. However, Kiri was quick to adapt to this change in battle, and sent her forced to deal with Nakasuga's group, rather than pursuing the Tank Destroyers. Despite this however, Bellwall's team managed to counter Seiguro's attack, eliminating two additional Matildas in the process. Unfortunately for them, Kiri's tank was in a good position to fire upon the escaping tanks, knocking out the T-44 and destroying the tracks of the Panzer II with a single shot. This forced Bellwall to retreat with only three of their five tanks, much to Kiri's delight. As Kiri was about to send tanks into the woods to scout out Bellwall's tanks, two Matildas were eliminated by the Elefant. The Jagdpanther and Tiger then rushed into the gap caused by the loss of the two tanks, and attempted to eliminate Kiri's flag tank with the Jagdpanther ramming the Churchill defending her Black Prince. Unfortunately for Bellwall, the Tiger I was unable to handle such sharp turns around the Jagdpanther, and immediately threw a track thus immobilizing itself. Kiri had anticipated that the Tiger I would be unable to handle such sharp turns, and referred to their efforts as a, "futile struggle". She then ordered her Matildas to open fire on the Tiger I, severely damaging the tank's motor systems. The blasts sent the Tiger I tumbling down a steep cliff, and eliminated the Jagdpanther. Kiri decided to send her forces around the side of the mountain to eliminate the Tiger I, as she reasoned that it would be impossible to attack the Elefant when it was on high ground. She voiced her confidence that the match was already over, and that Bellwall had absolutely no chance of winning. Unbeknownst to Kiri, the crew of the Panzer II had gotten their vehicle back up and running, and had rendezvoused with the Tiger I. Unfortunately for her, the Panzer II was crewed by the Kawashiba Sisters: the best members in the automotive club. Between the Kawashibas and the crew of the Tiger I, they were able to repair the Tiger I's motor functionality within minutes, rather than hours. As such, the Tiger I was mobile by the time Kiri's forces had circumvented the mountain. In addition, many of Kiri's forces (Matilda, Churchill) were infantry tanks, and moved much slower than one would have expected, giving the Bellwall team precious time to prepare an ambush. As Kiri approached the place where the Tiger I had fallen, she was surprised to see the silhouette of a tank, marveling at how quickly they had repaired it. She ordered her gunner and the other tanks to move forward and engage the target, confidant in her victory. When the tank was eliminated, she gloated and claimed that it was her victory. However, she was interrupted when her gunner expressed astonishment that the tank wasn't the Tiger I but rather the Panzer II, which had been acting as a diversion. Upon this revelation, her tank was struck in the side by the Tiger I, which had come up the opposite direction, destroying her tank's movement capabilities. The blast caused her to drop her teacup, and she turned: horrified that she had lost the most important match of her life. The Tiger I fired again, knocking out the Black Prince, and ending the match with a victory for Bellwall. Post-Match Distraught that she had lost her chance to face off against Darjeeling, Kiri emerged from her tank sobbing at her loss. However, she was able to reflect on her loss and accept it, in the time between the end of the match and when the teams met again. When Nagisa told Kiri that she wanted her older sister to continue pursuing Senshado after she graduated, Kiri was moved by her words, and vowed to train her sister from the ground up on tanks during the summer. She then undid her hair, signifying that she was no longer seeking to mimic Darjeeling, having found Senshado on her own terms. Bellwall vs. Ooarai During the match between Bellwall and Ooarai, Kiri Shiratori showed up to spectate the match, accompanied by her gunner. When her gunner asked if she was going to go see Nagisa, Kiri stated that it would not be necessary, as the two of them talked on the phone every night. Appearance Kiri Shiratori is a medium sized girl with long, blonde hair, and possibly light-brown eyes. When she ties her hair up in a french-braid, she bears a striking resemblance to Darjeeling, with the noticeable addition of two small hair drills on either side of her face. In her younger years, her hair was noticeably shorter, not unlike the current length of Nagisa's hair. She wears the West Kureouji Grona Academy Sensha-dou uniform, which also bears immense similarities to the St. Gloriana uniform. Personality From her first appearance, Kiri Shiratori appears to be both a cold-hearted and underhanded individual, sending her own sister to spy on Bellwall, as well as assaulting her physically on at least two occasions. Nagisa's claim that she was only allowed to do chores before also implies that Kiri used her as a servant, rather than a member of the team. However, upon given further information from both Nagisa and Kiri, it is evident that these actions were out of desperation rather than malice. When she was younger Kiri aspired to be just like Darjeeling, and decided to take up Sensha-dou. She ended up enjoying the activity, and was distraught to hear that she would be forced to quit Sensha-dou and take over the family business after she graduated. The commemorative cup was her last chance to fulfill her dream of battling against Darjeeling, and thus she ended up using desperate and disreputable tactics to ensure her victory. Emi Nakasuga noted that Kiri was actually a pretty good commander, with her main flaw being overtly arrogant. In addition, Kiri has a tendency to rely on more conventional tactics, in contrast to Nakasuga's irregular battle plans. As a result of her wealthy background, as well as her attempt to emulate Darjeeling, she speaks and acts in a very upper-class manner. Resemblance to Darjeeling Kiri Shiratori has gone out of her way to mimic Darjeeling of St. Gloriana Girl's Academy. Here are some notable examples of such mimicry. Kiri's Gunner Kiri's Gunner is a dead-ringer for Assam, having the same hairstyle and pin-point accuracy. The major difference between the two is that Assam is more stoic, less doting on Darjeeling and is much taller and mature-looking. Skill-wise Kiri's Gunner is just as good, if not better than, Assam as she was able to knock out one tank and flip another tank with the same shot. Drinking Tea Although Kiri Shiratori's family owns coffee plantations, she goes out of her way to drink tea rather than coffee. She commonly uses metaphors related to coffee, indicating that her drinking tea may have been forced. She even goes so far as to drink tea in her tank. When she is cornered, she even unintentionally drops her teacup, much like Darjeeling in the practice match between Ooarai and St. Gloriana. Uniforms The uniforms of West Kureouji Grona Academy appear to be exactly identical (in design at least) to St. Gloriana Girl's High School. It is unknown if the color is the same, as the Seiguro uniform has only been shown in black and white manga panels. Hairstyle Both of them have long hair tied in a french braid. Kiri's hair appears to be light-colored, based on the shading in the manga, but it is uncertain what color it actually is. Trivia * Kiri's alias of Kilimanjaro is the name of a brand of coffee beans, reflecting her family's ownership of coffee plantations. * Kiri's tank was mistakenly drawn as a Centurion rather than the A43 when she provoked Bellwall. It was corrected in subsequent publications. Gallery Churchill.jpg Category:Characters Category:Females Category:Polynymous Category:West Kureouji Grona Academy Category:Tank Commanders Category:Overall Commanders Category:Little Army 2 Characters